ROME, Ga.— Stephanie Petit captured an individual national championship with her singles win at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Cup on Sunday, marking the first championship in Montreat tennis history.
 
Petit, the No. 2 seed, utilized a three-set victory over the No. 1 seed, Nicole Coopersmith of Keiser, to notch the triumph. In a hard-fought battle, Petit edged her opposition 7-5, 4-6, 6-4. After trailing Coopersmith 4-2 in the decisive set, the Buenos Aires, Argentina native collected four consecutive game victories, including two breaks, to upset the top seed by a pair of games.

"[Stephanie] played incredibly smart and resilient and stuck with her plan," said head coach Mic Moore. "She has more heart than anything and I am so proud of all she has accomplished."
 
Outside of the final, Petit cruised to straight-set victories throughout the tournament. She first utilized a 6-1 7-6 (3) win to advance to the quarterfinals. Petit then added a 6-3, 6-1 triumph over Angela Rinaldi of San Diego Christian and a 6-3, 6-2 win over Selina Pichler of Georgia Gwinnett to set the stage for the final.
 
Petit was able to avenge a doubles semifinal loss to Coopersmith and her partner with the individual championship as Valerie Quiceno Ibarguen and Petit fell to the Keiser duo 7-5, 6-4. Though the No. 2 seed in Quiceno Ibarguen and Petit bowed out in the round before the final, the Montreat pairing won their initial two matches. They defeated a Georgia Gwinnett duo 6-2, 7-5 before claiming a 6-1, 6-3 triumph over a pairing from Ave Maria.
 
In the men's portion of the tournament, Ryan Little and Anouar Braham competed in doubles play following their regional title. Little and Braham fought valiantly, but ultimately fell in the opening round 6-4, 6-4 to the No. 4 seed out of Georgia Gwinnett.

"These kids made history day after day and I could not be more proud [of them]," added Moore. "I was so proud of how well we handled adversity. Montreat really made a name for itself at this tournament- not only with the way our players swing a tennis racket, but also for the class they display while representing the school and the sport of tennis."
 
Petit now awaits a potential at-large bid to the ITA National Fall Championships, which consists of the top 32 collegiate tennis players of any institutional level in the country. The tournament is slated to take place from Nov. 4 to Nov. 7 in San Diego, Calif.